I'm of the considered opinion that defining "Core" and "Extras"
was a bad idea. It makes the problem too binary. We should perhaps
consider the issue as a tree and define several trees, each path
being a possible install.
Currently Core and Extras have become emotionally loaded political words
and, as such, have lost any rational meaning.
We need, instead, to define a set of target endpoints (e.g. administrative
assistant, programmer, grandmother, email-browser, luser, etc). Then
someone becomes the designated "maintainer" for the endpoint and their
word is law. The maintainers can mark the packages with their badge
and the build system can make a "grandmother core". This can be done
downstream. The maintainers all report to a god-like figure (i'm
unavailable) similiar in role to a Linus.
So the "newbie" maintainer can have tuxracer.
The "sysadmin" maintainer can have the registry.
The "free" maintainer can have religion.
And we all can have peace.
kumbuya.
Tim Daly